


The Phantom Gang

by siriuslyyellow



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mob, Bank Robbery, Coming of Age, Crimes & Criminals, F/M, M/M, Romance, Sex, Underage Sex, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:41:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28208475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siriuslyyellow/pseuds/siriuslyyellow
Summary: Julie Molina's sixteenth birthday falls on the same day as the Molina crime family's one hundredth anniversary. It's up to her to make her first crime a job big enough to be worthy of such a monumental family event. After she dejectedly settles on a boring white collar crime, can a few ghosts help get her back on track to infamy?
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Flynn/Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Kudos: 57
Collections: Julie and the Phantoms Bang 2020





	The Phantom Gang

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is my first JatP fanfic, so I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> This was made for the JatP Bang 2020, which is the first EVER Julie and the Phantoms Bang event! I began, organized, and ran the event along with [kowaiyoukai](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kowaiyoukai/pseuds/kowaiyoukai).
> 
> Thanks to [kowaiyoukai](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kowaiyoukai/pseuds/kowaiyoukai) for coming in as a pinch-hitter to do the art for my fic, and for the absolutely awesome art she made!! And thanks to [breakaway71](https://archiveofourown.org/users/breakaway71/pseuds/breakaway71) for being my beta reader!!
> 
> You can find [kowaiyoukai](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kowaiyoukai/pseuds/kowaiyoukai)'s fantastic art here. Please show her some love!! [Julie & Flynn: Bank Robbers (JatP Bang 2020 Art)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28208904)
> 
> This fic was written in just over one day! When I lost inspiration on my first JatP Bang 2020 fic idea, this idea came to me. It seemed super fun, so I decided to go with it! At the end, I realized that I accidentally took that one "Alright, boss. Where we at?" line and really ran with it.
> 
> The underage warning is for one very explicit Luke/Julie scene, with ghost Luke being 17 and human Julie being 15. The violence warning is for general crime-typical violence--it's mostly off-screen mentions, and I believe nothing is extremely graphic.
> 
> Thank you for reading! Any and all kind comments and kudos are very much appreciated! I hope you all enjoy it! :D <3

The Molina crime family had a long and sordid history, as one would expect with all notorious crime families. It had gone back almost one hundred years--ninety-nine years, ten months, and fourteen days, to be exact. And it just so happened that, due to whatever powers decided the day of Julie Molina's birth, the second youngest member of the Molina crime family would be having her sixteenth birthday on the same day as the one hundredth anniversary of the Molina crime family.

Her younger brother Carlos had been full of judgement and jealousy. "If it was _my_ birthday, you can _bet_ I would do something the family would _never_ forget! This opportunity is totally _wasted_ on you, Julie!"

Tía Victoria was full of suggestions and ideas. "Oh! You know what your mama Rose would have just _loved_? An arms deal! That might be too ambitious for a fifteen year old, though. A gang war could work, too! Actually, you know what, honey? Just _anything_ violent would make your mama proud. Even if you just want to start off with a small arson."

Her father Ray had been full of support and confidence. "Whatever you choose will make the family proud, miha. Just make sure you pick the job that's right for _you_."

Her best friend and right hand woman Flynn had been full of understanding and loyalty. "This is a tough call, Jules. I can't tell you what to pick. I mean, _obviously_ I have my _preferences_ , but it's up to you. I'll back you up, no matter what."

Then there were the calls, texts, direct messages, and e-mails from her extended family. People in the Molina crime family who she had not spoken to in years felt that _now_ was the time for them to weigh in on her decision. All manner of crimes were brought up, from drug deals to bank fraud to murder. In one quite interesting and memorable group chat, two family members began arguing over the merits of murders versus assassinations. Julie politely removed herself from the conversation, leaving them to duke it out amongst themselves.

There were five things that Julie Molina already knew:

Number one: The one hundredth anniversary of the Molina crime family falling on the same day as her sixteenth birthday was not a gift. Not at all. Quite the contrary, whereas other Molinas had the freedom to pick something small for their first foray into the criminal world at sixteen, Julie was expected to pick something grand. It couldn’t only be her introduction into the family business; it had to be a spectacular celebration of the Molina families infamy. If her extended family had their way, Julie’s sixteenth birthday would not be sweet--it would be bitter, brutal, and splattered across the front page headline of every major newspaper. Julie hoped to find a solution that served both purposes--something that made the Molina crime family’s legacy proud while also being a crime she felt comfortable and confident committing as her first felony. 

Number two: Her mother Rose had possessed an almost unquenchable thirst for blood. She was known to be ruthless, a cutthroat killer who adored violence in nearly all of its forms. Famed for using her good looks and charm to take her victims by surprise, Rose was who the Molina crime family called when they needed someone taken out of the equation. In this way, Julie was most decidedly _not_ like her mother Rose. The second youngest member of the Molina crime family did not have a violent bone in her body. Since it was up to her, Julie decided that whatever crime she committed would be done with no injuries. Or at least, as little injuries as possible. Julie was no fool. In her families' line of work, sometimes people got hurt. Still, Julie was determined to have a total injury count of zero, and anything more she would consider to be a failure, regardless of her late mother’s preferences or what her family thought.

Number three: Since she was a little girl, Julie had been enamored with the idea of bank robbery. It was just so exciting and glamorous. She loved coming up with different plans for imaginary bank robbery scenarios. The money was great, although the fame was questionable. In an ideal world, if you were really good at your job, no one would know you were the one who robbed the bank. Julie knew of three past Molinas who all attempted to rob banks, and they all got caught. This crime came with a hefty prison sentence; one that Julie was not willing to risk getting. So her dream of robbing banks was most likely not doable, at least not for her first big crime.

Number four: Julie did not have a big team to help her. She was responsible for putting together everything for her sweet sixteenth bash--the job, the crew, the plan, _everything_. That meant any hopes of doing a successful bank robbery were off the table. With only six weeks left to plan everything, and only the help of her right hand gal Flynn, there was a _lot_ left to do, and not much time to do it at all.

Number five: Taking all of these things into account, there was only one crime that Julie thought could really represent the kind of work she wanted to do, the kind of _criminal_ she wanted to be. And that was bank fraud. Granted, it wasn’t exciting. It wouldn’t make headlines. But she could get away with it, make a lot of money, and not harm anyone in the process. It wasn’t perfect, but it would do.

White collar crime was not Julie's idea of fun, but it sure beat all of her current alternatives. With her mind set on being disappointed and bored by her choice, Julie still took Flynn out for milkshakes to celebrate finally picking her first crime. Let it never be said that Julie Molina did not make the best out of a bad situation.

Halfway through their milkshakes, Julie's gaze was drawn to the window, where she saw three very handsome boys right around their age. She elbowed Flynn and nodded towards the window.

Flynn's eyes narrowed as she leaned closer to the window to get a better look. After a few seconds, she sat back with a shrug. "Yeah, I don't see anything, Jules."

Julie blinked at her friend, then pointed right at the three guys. "Right there."

Flynn shook her head. "Nope."

Julie glared at her. "They are. Literally. Right. There." She pointed at them again. This time, Julie saw one--the most attractive one, in her opinion--staring at her. Julie pulled her hand back, a bit embarrassed to be caught watching him. But then he waved at her. Smirking, Julie waved back.

He looked like he had seen a ghost.

The guy quickly pulled his friends closer, pointed her out to them, and waved again. He was so incredulous and excited, Julie couldn't help but let out an exasperated laugh as she waved back again. All three boys looked shocked.

Flynn shook her head at Julie. "Stop waving at nothing, Jules. People will think you're crazy, and I've got a reputation to keep up here." She went back to drinking her milkshake.

Julie looked back to the window, but the three guys were no longer there. Deciding to ignore the strange feeling in her gut, she went back to her milkshake, too.

On their way out of the milkshake joint, Julie saw the three guys hanging out at the edge of an alley down the block. Their interaction in the shop had been cute, but her dad didn't raise a fool. Julie had her switchblade out and ready to go in ten seconds. Flynn saw this, looked around for the potential threat as she got her own weapon out, and then looked to Julie for instructions. Julie nodded her head towards the boys, but Flynn clearly could not see them. Choosing to put aside the growing concern she had for her best friend's vision, Julie tilted her chin towards the guys to indicate their location. Flynn looked directly at them, then on either side of them. She looked back at Julie with a small shrug.

Julie didn’t know what was going on, but she was going to figure it out.

Making a quick turn down an alley, Flynn followed her. Julie briefly explained her plan. “They’re at the end of the next alley. I’m going up behind them to corner them. You’ll provide back-up.”

“Jules, there’s nothing--”

“I _said_ you’ll provide back-up,” Julie repeated in a non-nonsense tone.

Flynn’s brows knotted in confusion, but her eyes hardened, a sign she was getting ready to fight if she had to. “Got it, boss.”

They went around the familiar building, going up the back end of the alley the boys had been standing in. The three were not facing their way, and didn’t see them approach. Julie could overhear a small part of their conversation before she got close enough to grab one of them.

“I’m _telling_ you, guys, she could see us,” the attractive one was saying.

The tall one replied, “That’s impossible. There has to be another explanation.”

“Yeah,” the one wearing red plaid agreed. “Maybe someone she knew was passing behind us.”

The attractive one groaned. “Come _on_ , you guys. Why are you fighting me on this? You all saw her waving at us!”

The tall one sighed as the one in plaid replied, “Yeah, but we’re-- _oh, shit!_ ”

He was cut off when Julie grabbed the attractive one and slammed his back up against the brick wall. Hard. She held her switchblade to his throat, using the strength of her forearms and knees to pin him to the wall.

“What the fuck are you doing, Julie?” Flynn asked, sounding like she didn’t have the slightest clue what was going on.

But Julie wasn’t looking at Flynn. She was staring up into a pair of extremely attractive brown eyes.

"You… You can touch me," the boy she was pinning to the wall stammered out, shocked.

Julie glared at him, annoyed. "Of course I can touch you! Tell me why you're following us!"

Instead of answering, he just stared at her, and she stared right back. Julie felt her hardened expression melt a little, looking into his eyes. She started cataloguing his face, committing every one of his facial features to memory. It was only a few seconds, but by the time she came back to her senses, Julie saw this guy cheekily smirking at her.

"Like what you see?"

Julie blushed and glared, tightening the switchblade against his throat. "Don't change the subject! Answer me, now!" She nodded at Flynn. "Grab the other two."

The two boys who were currently not being held were looking at the scene unfolding in front of them with disbelief and awe.

Flynn held her hands out to her sides. "Julie. No one is here."

Julie scoffed. "Flynn, now is not the time for whatever this bullshit is, okay? Just fucking grab them while I deal with this one."

"You are literally holding nothing against that wall, Jules." Flynn waved her hand right in front of Julie's face, and it passed through the attractive guy's body.

Julie shrieked and jumped back, letting him go and dropping her switchblade in the process. "Flynn, what the fuck? Your hand went right through him!"

Flynn groaned. She took out her phone, snapped a picture, and then showed it to Julie. "See? Nothing."

Flynn was right. The only person in the picture was Julie. The three boys near her were not in it at all.

"This… This is impossible," Julie said, mumbling it mostly to herself. She picked up her switchblade and quickly pointed it at them. "You guys better start talking."

And they did. But first, Julie had to let the attractive one hold her coat to show Flynn she wasn't losing her mind. After a few more tests, Flynn believed the boys existed. Then when the boys told her their story, she had to tell Flynn the information as she got it so her right hand girl was kept informed.

The attractive one was named Luke. The tall one was Alex. And the one wearing red plaid was Reggie. It turns out the three were ghosts. They died twenty years ago, when they were seventeen. They only recently appeared back on earth, and they had no idea why. When Julie asked about the circumstances behind their demise, the boys looked skittish.

Julie smirked. "What am I gonna do? You guys are already dead."

"I don't know. You're pretty handy with that knife," Luke playfully teased her.

Julie raised her eyebrow, flipping the switchblade closed and open again. "You wanna see what else I can do with it?"

Luke smirked back. "Only if you promise to get handsy with me again."

Alex groaned. "Please tell me we were not brought back to hear you flirt badly."

Luke looked offended as Julie laughed.

Flynn brought the conversation back to business. "Did they tell you how they died?"

"Not yet," Julie answered, looking expectantly at them.

Reggie scratched his earlobe. "Well, we ate some bad hot dogs."

Julie looked extremely unimpressed. "That's it?"

Luke defended them. "Hey, it was a big night for us!"

Alex smacked his shoulder and shook his head. Luke looked apologetic.

"How so?" Julie crossed her arms, having no problem pressing them for information.

The three guys looked at each other. Then Reggie shrugged. "She's right. We're already dead."

Luke sighed. "We were gonna rob a bank."

Julie blinked. "What?"

"I said--"

"No, no. I heard you. It's just…," Julie trailed off, shaking her head. "That was supposed to be my first crime."

Alex looked confused. "Your first crime? What, are you planning on being a mob boss or something?"

Julie shrugged, then nodded. "Well, yeah. I'm a Molina."

"Oh, shit!" Luke exclaimed. He jumped a little, excitedly. "Boys, we're in the presence of criminal _royalty_!"

Julie laughed, and shushed them out of habit, not really thinking that no one else could see them. “Let’s talk somewhere else, yeah?”

After that, she took Flynn and the boys back to her house. The garage had been transformed into her own space to use for whatever sort of criminal enterprises ahe wanted to get up to. It was private, and perfect for what she wanted to do, which was get her three new ghost friends on board with helping her. With their help, she had a real shot at pulling off a bank robbery. She might not have to be stuck doing bank fraud.

It took a while to explain the whole situation to them, but once she did, the three ghosts were very much on board with helping Julie pull off a successful bank robbery. The boys viewed themselves as heisters, and it had been their dream to rob several banks. They shared their plans, and Julie had to hand it to them, she really thought they could have done these jobs well. There were a few problems with their old plans that Julie knew would need correcting. Not wanting to waste another moment of time, she got right down to it.

The first thing was updating the guys on how technology had advanced since their day. Sure, they didn’t know what cell phones were, but it was more than that. There were updated security systems, video with facial recognition, heat sensors, and more. There were two decades of security advancements that they would have to deal with if they intended to do a heist without getting caught.

And that wasn’t all. They had to test the guys’ ghost powers. How much could they carry? Could they bring things through walls? If they were holding something, was it caught on camera? And a whole slew of other questions that kept them up well into the night that first night they worked together as a crew.

Flynn left while the rest of them were still working. Julie felt her eyes getting heavy, but she was so invested in this that didn’t think anything of it other than she would have to power through it. A few hours later, Julie was blinking awake and realized that she must have fallen asleep in the middle of their meeting. She had been more tired than she thought she was.

Looking around, she saw that she was alone in the garage, save for Luke, who she was currently half laying on. She must have fallen asleep and then fallen on him. Her head was on his shoulder, and one of her arms was slung across his lap. His body felt comfortable and pliant under hers, and when she lifted her head up, he looked down at her with a soft smile.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” she replied, not getting up. She put her head back down. “I’m exhausted.”

“Yeah. You looked comfortable. I didn’t wanna wake you.”

Julie let out a short hum of agreement. “Guess I should get up.”

“If you want to,” Luke replied, softly.

Looking up at him again, Julie smirked a little. “Oh, yeah? You don’t mind me using you as a pillow?”

Luke looked at her and evenly replied, his tone flirting with heat, “You can use me for whatever you want, boss.”

Julie sat up and looked at Luke. “You mean that?”

Nodding, Luke replied, “Yes. I mean it. Anything.”

Moving slowly, Julie straddled him, loosely wrapping her arms around his neck. Luke gently placed his hands on her waist.

“You sure you want to do this?” Julie watched Luke’s face, looking for any sign of doubt or hesitation.

Luke laughed, smiling in return. “Am I sure I want to have sex with a beautiful girl who also happens to be amazing and intelligent and a fellow aspiring bank robber? Yes, Julie. I’m sure.”

“Who says we’re having sex?” Julie smirked.

Luke smirked back. “Like I said, use me for whatever you want. I’m just happy to be involved.”

“I like the sound of that,” Julie murmured before leaning in and kissing Luke slowly.

Luke kissed Julie back, following her lead. Julie slowly ramped up the passion, and before she knew it, she was going for Luke’s pants. He moaned, pulling down her pants in return. They were both turned on and impatient, so as soon as their underwear was no longer an obstacle, Luke put his finger inside of Julie. He took it slow at first, just wanting to make sure she was ready for him, and then he added a second finger. While Julie appreciated Luke’s thoughtfulness, what she really wanted right then was him inside of her. Taking matters into her own hands, Julie removed Luke's fingers from inside of her, told hold of his dick, causing Luke to gasp, lined him up with herself, and then sat down on him. They both moaned at the sensation, and before long, Julie was rocking back and forth on top of Luke, kissing him passionately as she took what she wanted from him, what had been eagerly offered.

In the middle of their encounter, Alex and Reggie poofed back into the garage.

Alex said, "Hey, so I found--oh my God!" He spun around, covering his eyes as Reggie followed suit.

"Scram, guys. We're busy," Julie commanded them, voice breathy from exertion. "You can fill us in later."

"Looks like you're already pretty full to me," Reggie joked, earning him a smack upside his head from Alex and a glare from Julie.

"I said scram," she growled out. "Don't _make_ me come over there."

Luke groaned, murmuring, "Oh, fuck."

Alex gave Julie a salute with his back turned to her and Luke. "Got it, boss."

Reggie looked at Alex. "But what about--"

" _Later_ , Reg. They are _fucking_ ," Alex quickly replied. He grabbed the fabric on Reggie's shoulder and they both poofed away.

Julie rolled her eyes, smiling a little at the two boys. Then she looked back at her own ghost boy. "Now, where were we?"

Luke's face was flushed, and Julie wondered how that worked since he was dead. "You were using me however you wanted to, boss," he murmured, low and hot.

Julie practically purred. "That's right. I was."

Hours later, after they went for three rounds and then Julie declared she really _did_ need some sleep before school in the morning, she left Luke with some instructions on what to study up on for the heist. He nodded, looking very satisfied, and she went off to bed. The following day passed without anything of note happening, and that evening the crew met up for another planning session. During it, Alex mentioned what he had wanted to tell Julie and Luke the night before--he had found someone who could help them. Another ghost, a pickpocket named Willie. Julie had Alex introduce them off-site, and once Willie proved he could be an asset to the team by showing off his skills to Julie, she brought him in that very same night. As they continued with their planning session, Julie couldn’t help but notice that Alex and Willie kept glancing at each other and quickly looking away. That was fine by her--Julie had no problems with members of her crew getting involved with each other as long as they didn’t lose focus of their mission.

This pattern of boring school days coupled with engaging heist planning nights went on for several weeks. Some nights, Julie would stay to have sex with Luke, and some nights she wouldn't. They never discussed it more, and it was clear to Julie that Luke knew his role was to be a member of the team and not to be her second in command. Julie already had Flynn for that, and she was not about to replace her lifelong best friend for a hot dead guy she just met, regardless of how good he was at giving her multiple orgasms.

As the weeks passed, the ghosts became more familiar with modern technology, and they all learned just what exactly the ghosts could do. After many experiments, it boiled down quite simply--the ghosts could move through walls and poof to places if they were not holding anything from the material world, but if they were holding or interacting with something that had a physical form then they had to follow the rules of the regular world. Basically, they could float through the walls of a bank, or poof in with no problem. But if they were holding a bag full of money, it wouldn't go through walls or poof with them, so they would have to bring it outside like any other heister would have to do. That meant they had to use doors, windows, or blow a hole in a wall to walk out.

Julie picked the bank they would hit, came up with their plan of attack, and took care of all of the things they would need for the heist. It was her job to set everything up. She was the leader, the mastermind, the boss. Whether the job was a huge success or a huge failure, the weight of it fell squarely on Julie’s shoulders.

As Julie’s right hand, Flynn was responsible for overseeing the crew and making sure they had everything they needed to do their jobs successfully. This was more difficult than it normally would have been since Flynn couldn’t actually _see_ the ghosts. The boys had worked out a situation where they wrote down their plans in a notebook, and Flynn would make edits and corrections as needed. Flynn also had to be available to Julie for anything she might require, but both girls were used to the rank of command by now, and adding in crew management to Flynn’s list of duties fit in perfectly.

Luke’s criminal specialities were distractions and driving. He was excellent at making people look elsewhere when his team had to have an area cleared of any prying eyes. And if you needed a getaway driver, well, you couldn’t do better than Luke Patterson. He had a natural skill at speeding away, losing anyone who was tailing him, then dumping the car that had been made in favor of another car. Luke prided himself on being a law-abiding driver when he needed to so his crew wouldn’t get caught, even though he did prefer the thrill of the chase right after they had committed a crime.

Reconnaissance and infiltration were Alex’s areas of expertise. He was a professional at observing people, places, and things in order to get an accurate assessment of them. He could then use those assessments to make intelligent, logical deductions about the best way to get in and out of places without causing a scene. Usually when Alex’s plan worked well, the boys hadn’t needed Luke’s flashy getaway driving. From what Julie understood, this meant that typically one of the two boys weren’t completely satisfied with how their jobs ended. In her opinion, it was better to leave quietly and without attention as Alex planned, but it was good to have Luke on hand in case the need for speed overtook the desire for stealth.

Dealing with explosives and weapons were where Reggie shined. What he lacked in brains, he made up for in sheer firepower. Reggie had a good heart and a strong sense of loyalty, so Julie was comfortable knowing that Reggie would follow her instructions about not using violence unless it was absolutely necessary. And in Julie’s opinion, having four ghosts on her side meant the need for violence should be absolutely none. Maybe they would have to knock a guard or five unconscious, but Julie wasn’t concerned about that. If she could get away with robbing a bank without having a single casualty, well, she just _knew_ the public would paint her as a hometown hero, someone who was taking one back from the people in power, someone who those struggling could look up to as a dream they could never pull off but would still view with admiration and a hope for a better life. _That_ was the kind of infamy she wanted. And with Reggie’s knowledge of explosives and ability to carefully select targets, Julie was sure her crew could be the infamous hometown heroes she dreamed up.

They added Willie to the team because of his pickpocketing skills, but it turned out he also had a penchant for all types of robbery. His lockpicking and burglary skills were next level, and he regularly bragged about how he broke into Justin Beiber’s home safe and snatched up a small porcelain vase at a museum, but didn’t actually steal them because it was all just for fun. He only had wanted to prove to himself that he _could_ do it. And being a ghost, he didn’t have any real need for money, anyway.

So, that was it. Julie’s crew, in a nutshell. She felt like her odds of having a successful job skyrocketed with the addition of the ghosts. There were a number of ways having them on her team helped, not the least of which was financially. Julie had been given the Molina crime family's standard one hundred and sixty thousand dollar budget for her first job. When she was younger, she had thought that was _so_ much money and that a person could do almost _anything_ with that kind of cash. Her father had chuckled affectionately, promising her that she would feel differently once she was older and planning her first crime. Boy, had he been right.

She didn't have to pay the ghosts, which helped. At first, Julie felt like she should pay them anyway, but after discussing it with Flynn, Julie realized that giving the ghosts an equal cut of the money they get from the job was more than fair. After all, they were dead. The only thing they could do with the money was give it away. When Julie told this to them, they reluctantly agreed it made sense. Luke had been gung-ho about wanting the infamy, not the money, but then once Flynn started talking about taking Luke's portion for a yacht, Alex jumped in to say that no, Luke did actually want his share too.

So Julie was left with more money to spend on other things. The ghosts didn't need gear, but Julie and Flynn did. Julie had a talent for fashion which she had been cultivating towards making disguises. She was spending both time and money on that while she left Flynn to do the more dirty work of finding a security officer to bribe. One night, Flynn came back with bloodied knuckles and handed Julie a SD card. Julie frowned.

"You got blood on your disguise again, Flynn," she noted, annoyed.

Flynn grinned, pulling off her long wig. "Just doing my job, boss."

The work continued, and soon enough, before they knew it, it was Julie's birthday. She made sure to have her dad call her out sick from school the day before so it wouldn't look so suspicious when she called out on her birthday.

"Yup, she still has that darn cold," her father told the secretary at her school's front desk while giving her a wink. "Sure thing." He paused. "Will do." Another pause. "Alright, you take care, too." He hung up, then turned to look at Julie. Holding her cheeks, Ray leaned down to kiss his daughter on the top of her head. "Good luck today, miha. I'm sure you'll make the family proud."

Julie grinned up at her father and gave him a conspiratorial wink. "Thanks, dad. I think you're gonna love it."

As was tradition in the Molina crime family, no one outside of Julie and her crew knew exactly what crime she was planning. They all were to be told after the fact, but Julie was _hoping_ they'd see it on the news first.

Based on the valuable information Flynn had gotten for them on the SD card, Julie knew that the best time to strike was at 11:47 in the morning. It was the least staffed portion of the day and right between two guards switching out for their lunch shifts. If all went according to plan, and Julie was as confident as she could be that it would, then they would be in and out before another guard ever even caught on to their presence in the bank. As they didn’t need explosives for this job, Reggie would stay in the car, acting as look-out and back-up. It helped that he could poof in to tell them if anything was happening, too. And even though letting the ghosts take point seemed much more logical than getting herself directly involved, this was Julie’s big day, and she knew she had to be the one to take charge inside.

Julie and Flynn packed up everything they needed for the heist, and then moved all of it to a room they rented under a false name for the day. They took their time putting on their disguises, making sure they looked nothing like themselves by the end of it. They decided to dress up in extravagant costumes based on very specific themes. For their first heist, Julie thought it was appropriate to wear formalwear for the event, so she dressed up like a debutante. Flynn followed suit, and after putting in a lot of effort on their costumes and make-up, Julie was confident that there was no way they could be identified.

Julie was wearing a bright purple dress, filled with frills and lace. Flynn’s dress was dark blue, and equally ostentatious. They both wore extravagant masks that hid the top half of their faces, and they used prosthetic pieces to change the shape of the bottom half of their faces. Extreme make-up was put over their faces and down their chests to change their skin color, and they wore fancy white gloves to prevent leaving fingerprints. To top it all off, they each threw a black cloak over their ensembles, both to hide their outfits and to throw off dramatically at just the right moment inside the bank.

When they joined the ghosts in the main room after changing, the boys all fell silent in awe.

“You two look _great_ ,” Alex said, grinning at them. Willie nodded in agreement, giving them both two thumbs up.

Reggie grabbed a notebook, quickly jotted something down in it, and showed it to Flynn. She laughed and said, “Maybe later if you’re lucky.” Flynn winked in the wrong direction. Reggie smiled happily, then quickly scribbled out whatever it was that he wrote down.

Luke walked up to Julie, and then gently took her hand and pressed his lips to the back of it. “You’re gorgeous, boss,” he whispered, so only she could hear it. “Absolutely stunning.”

Julie blushed. “You’re always a charmer, Luke.”

“You make it easy,” he replied, giving her one of his crooked smiles as he lowered her hand.

Wanting to waste no more time, Julie easily took charge of the group and gave them some last-minute directions. It was all just going over things they had already been over a hundred times before, but Julie was a fan of repetition, and she believed practice made perfect. The crew was used to her command by now, and quickly fell into place. They left their rented room as empty as they found it, packed their car, then headed towards their second stop--a mall parking lot. There, they parked their black sedan next to a white van. They moved the necessary tools into the white van, hopped in, and they were off.

Julie felt her heart racing. She sat in the back with three of the ghosts as Flynn drove with Reggie riding shotgun. They were having a conversation using text-to-speak messages on Flynn’s phone as she drove, but Julie tuned it out. Right behind the driver’s seat, Alex sat next to Willie. Alex’s knee was bouncing anxiously, and Willie wrapped an arm over his shoulder, soothing him with soft words that Julie couldn’t make out. On the other side of the van right by the back door sat Julie, with Luke right beside her. She felt Luke take her hand and looked over at him.

“You’re gonna do great, Jules,” Luke said, squeezing her fingers in support.

Julie smiled at him, looking uncharacteristically uncertain. “Yeah? You think so?”

“I _know_ so,” he replied. “You’re the best crime boss a guy could ask for.” Julie laughed, but Luke shook his head. “No, seriously. I mean it. You’re going to kick ass in there, and we’re all here to back you up.”

Julie felt her confidence restored at Luke’s heartfelt words. As her shoulders straightened, she told him, “Thanks, Luke. I appreciate it.”

“Anytime, boss,” he replied, grinning from ear to ear.

Flynn pulled the van up to their predetermined parking spot. Julie clapped her hands twice. The whole crew looked at her, waiting for their leader’s instructions.

“Alright, this is it, everyone,” Julie said, looking at them all with a firm nod. “We all know our jobs. Let’s get in, get the money, get out, and show the Molina crime family and the whole _world_ that Julie Molina means _business_.”

Everyone gave an excited whoop, cheering on themselves and each other. Then they grabbed their gear and took their places. Reggie walked through the van door without opening it and stood outside the van, facing the front door of the bank. Julie hopped out of the back, politely waiting for the three ghosts to exit before closing the double doors behind them. Flynn left the driver’s side, closing the door and taking the empty bags Julie handed her as she walked. Luke walked next to Julie, and Alex walked next to Flynn, their faces full of determination. Willie parted ways with them, already heading to the safe by walking in through the outside walls of the bank.

Entering the bank was easy. They received a look or two, but no one really paid them any mind. Flynn hung out by the front door, pretending to fill out a deposit slip. She was working with Reggie as another look-out, and to make sure no one got in or out once their heist began. Julie went on line, Luke and Alex following right behind her. Once she got to the counter, Julie grinned at the teller.

“Hi,” she said, sounding as sweet as she possibly could. “I’m going to need to make a withdrawal.”

“Sure thing,” the teller said. “I just need your debit card for that.”

“No. You don’t.” Julie replied, revealing a tranquilizer gun underneath her cloak.

The teller stiffened, the color draining from his face.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Julie said. “Your call.”

He reached underneath the counter.

Julie shrugged. “Hard way it is, then.” She shot him with the tranquilizer gun, and he grabbed his side where the dart had hit him as he fell to the floor with a loud clatter and moan. Julie spun around, throwing off her cloak and turning on her voice modulator to change how she sounded, and seeing Flynn do the same as she took her position blocking the front door after she locked it.

“Ladies, gentlemen, and non-binary guests,” Julie announced. “This is a robbery. Please remain calm, and you will get out of here in one piece. This will all be over soon.” A guard to her right reached for his gun, but Flynn shot him with her tranquilizer gun first, and he fell to the floor. Some of the customers began shouting. One reached for their cell phone, but Luke was on it. He grabbed the device out of the man’s hand and chucked it across the room. The guy began screaming at his cell phone being pulled from his hand and thrown away by seemingly nothing. “As you can see,” Julie continued, “I have some special help with me this morning.” She passed Alex the empty bags, and he walked them over to the back door, which Willie had just opened for them. There was more screaming at the sight of floating bags, and Julie held up her hands to quiet the crowd down, “Now, now. We’re just here for the money in the vault. Stay still, stay calm, and we’ll be gone before you know it.”

When they didn’t quiet, Julie pointed her weapon at one particularly freaked out man. A woman next to him stepped in front of him, holding up her hands in surrender. “Please don’t shoot my husband,” she begged. “We’ll be quiet, okay? We’ll do whatever you want.”

Julie slung the big gun over her shoulder. “That’s good. All I want is for you to be quiet.”

Alex and Willie began bringing bags out to Flynn’s feet, and within three minutes, they had effectively cleared out the joint. Julie took a bow. “Thank you all for being such well-behaved guests. Enjoy the rest of your day.” She picked up some of the bags, as did her three companions, causing another round of gasps and shrieks from the crowd at seeing the bags float right past them with no one they could see carrying them.

Flynn unlocked the front door, held it open for Julie, Luke, Alex, and Willie, and then left herself. They ran to the van, hearing people screaming and frantically making phone calls behind them. Reggie ran up to grab Luke’s bags, and Luke ran to the driver’s seat once he passed them off. Julie and Flynn opened the back doors, and the gang quickly threw the bags in the back and jumped in. Julie closed the doors behind them as Luke started driving away while Reggie once again went to sit in the passenger side seat.

Julie and Flynn quickly began undressing, stuffing their outfits in empty duffle bags, revealing regular unremarkable street clothes underneath. They hurried to take off their make-up and wigs, and were done with the entire process by the time they returned to the mall. Keeping their gloves on, they left the van, which Luke was able to drive normally since the police hadn’t made it in time to give them a problem. Still, they dumped the van there, hopped into their sedan while bringing everything with them so they left the van completely empty, and then they were off.

Julie waited with baited breath until they were out of the mall and down the road before she let out a joyous shout. “Oh my God, Flynn! We did it!” She gripped Flynn’s shoulder tightly, shaking her best friend in excitement.

Flynn laughed gleefully in return. “I know! That was _insane_!” She grinned over at Julie. “And when you said ‘non-binary guests’? I just about lost it.”

Julie smirked, feeling really good about it. “I wanted to be inclusive. What if someone who _was_ non-binary was there? I wanted to include them.” She settled back into her seat, looking satisfied. “I hope they put that in the papers.”

Flynn nodded. “I know, I know. And hey, maybe you’re right. Maybe you made someone’s day in that bank lobby.”

Luke piped up from the back, “Well, she certainly made _ours_! We’re officially _loaded_ , team!”

The ghosts all cheered from their cramped seating in the back, which was quite a sight to behold. Luke was sitting behind Julie, Reggie was sitting behind Flynn, Alex was sitting in between them, and Willie was sitting on Alex’s lap with the top of his head partially sticking out the roof of the car. Of course Flynn couldn’t see any of this, but Julie grinned, shaking her head at their antics.

Flynn drove around a little before heading back to the garage, just to ensure they weren’t being followed. Once they arrived, they all brought the bags and equipment into the garage, closing the door behind them. There were hugs and high-fives and kisses and cheers. They ordered pizza and spent the day watching the news, hoping for a mention of their heist, and divvying up the cash.

About an hour later, Reggie suddenly grabbed the remote and turned the volume way up, smacking Willie on the shoulder and exclaiming, "Hey, hey, it's us! We're on TV!" Everyone rushed over to get a better view.

A friendly-looking woman in a business suit was standing in front of the bank they had robbed earlier, holding a microphone in her right hand and gesturing behind her at the various police officers and vehicles with her left. "As you can see, the Los Feliz Police Department is out in full force today after this morning's robbery of First Capital Bank. Witnesses say it was almost as if they'd seen… a ghost."

The picture switched to show one of the hostages from earlier looking dumbstruck. The man said, "I'm telling you, there must have been ten, no, twenty bank robbers in there! The way these bags were moving, they just _had_ to have some kind of intricate pulley system set up!"

Now the television showed a woman, the one who had jumped in front of her husband. "Oh, we were terrified. _Terrified_. Of course, who wouldn't be, right? But they did just as they said, they left us alone, just took the money and ran."

An elderly man started nodding his head when it switched to show him. "Well, I was just getting some money for lunch with the guys, then all of a sudden there's shouting and bags floating in the middle of the air!" He held up his hand. "Now, I know my vision ain't great anymore, but I'm tellin' ya, I saw what I saw!"

A security guard was using his hands to explain what happened to him next. "I reached for my sidearm and boom, I was out, just like that. But what can you do?" He shrugged. "They only used non-lethal tranq dart guns, so I'm thankful for that."

A younger woman looked like she was really trying to convince the interviewer of something. "They had to have some kind of technology to make them invisible. I hear the military has that kind of tech nowadays. Or maybe NASA? You should really go talk to NASA."

Another woman appeared on the screen, looking calm. "You know, when the robbers first included non-binary people in their introduction, I knew we were gonna be okay. I figured they were probably Gen Z, and my son has a non-binary friend from school right around that age, too. They're a very kind person. Polite, considerate. A good kid." She waved a hand nonchalantly. "They wouldn't rob a bank, so it's not exactly the same, but I was right. I did what the robbers said, and I'm fine. No harm done."

This time a man came on the screen, circling his hand in the air above his head. "The bags were flying. I mean _flying_ , like _ghosts_ were running around the place!" He laughed. "Man, you can't make this shit up!"

The newswoman was back on the television screen now, giving the viewers a serious look with a bit of a twinkle in her eye. "As you can see, there is quite a lot of speculation about the identities of today's bank robbers. All we know for sure is they are being called the Phantom Gang, and these Phantoms got what they came for. Back to you at the studio, Jimmy."

The camera switched to show a man and a woman, both wearing business suits, sitting behind a large desk.

"It sounds like this Phantom Gang got a pretty good reputation from the people there, Tanya," the man said with a big smile.

The woman nodded, replying, "They sure did, Jimmy. But that won't save them from the police."

The man laughed. "It certainly won't! Onto our next story--"

Reggie turned the volume down, bouncing excitedly on the couch as he did so. "The Phantom Gang! That is so cool!"

Luke nodded in quick agreement. "It is an _awesome_ name! The media could have totally fucked us too. But this makes me pumped up to do even more bank jobs!"

Julie laughed. "I like the sound of that." She stood up and held up a slice of pizza to make a toast with. "To the Phantom Gang!"

There was an echoing chorus of "To the Phantom Gang!" toasts, with raised pizza slices and matching grins on the entire crew's faces.

Shortly after that news story aired, Julie began getting contacted by her extended family, asking if she was the mastermind behind the Phantom Gang. Responding with their usual phrase for acknowledging a crime without admitting to it in case the cops were listening in--”One can never tell”--Julie happily accepted the praise and congratulations her family gave her. There were a lot of questions about the technicalities behind the crime, how did she get the bags to float, how much did she get, did she have plans to do it again, that sort of thing. But Julie kept all of that information close to her chest. It wasn’t anyone’s business besides her and her crew’s, and the less other people knew about it, the better.

That night, he father took her, her brother, her aunt, and Flynn out for a fancy celebratory dinner. Both to congratulate her hugely successful first crime, and to wish her a happy Sweet Sixteen. They tried to get information out of Julie too, but Julie just smiled and complimented the food. The next day at school, Julie heard her classmate Carrie telling her boyfriend Nick that her father Trevor, a detective for the LFPD, and his partner Caleb were working on the Phantom Gang case. She was bragging about it pretty loudly, and so Julie and Flynn were able to get some solid information on the case the cops had against them. It was flimsy, at best. The cops had nothing but a list of known criminals in the area. Nothing that could tie Julie or Flynn to the job. When she told the ghosts the good news after school, they all looked relieved, but Luke especially. He gave Julie a little twirl and then sat her down on his lap, where she remained for the duration of their planning session. After all, the first job had gone so well that they just _had_ to do another.

After another two months had passed, the Phantom Gang hit their second bank. This time their target was bigger, and more money was at stake. The job went through without a hitch, and in fact, some of the clients visiting the bank actually seemed to be excited that they were there. Two months following that, they pulled off a job at a third bank. This one was smaller, but had more security due to having richer clients. Not only did that one go well, but a few people in the bank lobby had actually asked Julie for selfies and signatures. She gave them a smirk, but left without obliging her newfound fans.

The Phantom Gang was coming up more and more in the papers and tabloids. Articles speculated where they would strike next, what they were going to do with all the money they were stealing, would the police ever be able to catch them, and who exactly made those gorgeous debutante dresses? Julie and her crew were basking in the infamy, loving the underground spotlight.

In the six months since Julie had met Luke, Alex, and Reggie, a lot of things changed in her life. She now believed in ghosts and in the supernatural, for starters. She had more money than she knew what to do with, and she was still figuring out exactly what she wanted to spend it all on. She had received accolades from her family, becoming known for having the most successful sixteenth birthday crime in the one hundred year history of the Molina crime family, and on a day that would live on in her family’s history for long after she was gone. And then there was her crew.

Flynn became even more trusted as her right hand woman. Her best friend began a relationship with Reggie. It was odd, seeing them together. Julie could see the bright smile that Flynn put on Reggie’s face, but knew she would never be able to see his smile for herself. The couple seemed to do all sorts of things to cope. Flynn would trace Reggie’s features with her fingers so she could learn his face. Reggie would throw a blanket over his shoulders to give Flynn a better idea of where exactly he was. The two kept communicating using his notebook or her cell phone. Eventually, the entire group became used to it, and seeing Reggie and Flynn curled up together on the couch became old hat.

Alex and Willie started dating before Julie was aware of it. She had already known they liked each other, and so it wasn’t a huge surprise when she found out. It was just interesting how little she knew of what they did privately. Because they were both ghosts, they could poof together anywhere they wanted to go, and they often did just that. Julie was happy for them, as they seemed very happy together. Alex and Willie were always pulling each other in for quick hugs and kisses, and slinging their arms over each other’s shoulders during their crew strategy meetings. In Julie’s opinion, they were very sweet, and she found them to be an absolutely adorable couple.

And then there was Luke. Julie hadn’t spent much time considering what she and Luke had, she was always too busy planning heists and focusing on her day to day routines to worry about anything else. But Luke had been there with her, through thick and thin, for the past half a year. And considering Julie Molina was an up and coming crime lord, that was no small feat. Luke’s loyalty and dedication did not go unnoticed, and neither did his wonderful love-making skills. He was always there for her with a congratulatory kiss after a job went well or a supportive hug if plans fell through. Luke Patterson was a guy the likes of which Julie didn’t think she would ever find again, on earth or in the afterlife. And so, Julie pulled Luke aside one night before their regular Phantom Gang meeting.

“I have to tell you something,” Julie said, taking Luke’s hand in her own.

Luke intertwined their fingers together. “You can tell me anything, Jules. You know that.”

She smiled up at him. “I know.” Then she took a deep breath before continuing, “You’ve been my guy for six months now, Luke. I can’t imagine having anyone else in my crew, or in my bed.” Luke smiled softly at this, and Julie squeezed his hands. “Luke Patterson, I want you to be mine. Do you accept?”

They both knew what she was asking. In the criminal world they came from, asking another person to be yours was somewhere between asking them to date you and marry you, with being a business partner thrown in on the side. It not only meant that they were yours, but also that you were theirs. It was more serious than dating because you knew you had to rely on each other to live. And even though that wasn’t fully the case in Luke’s case, he still would be agreeing to look out for Julie no matter what. Julie was asking him to be her partner, her lover, the person who is her ride or die. The one person she could count on more than anyone else. That’s who Julie wanted Luke to be for her. That's who Luke already _was_ , in Julie's eyes. All that remained was the formality of it, for the crew's sake. And, if Julie was being honest with herself, for her own sake too.

Luke grinned brightly, then pulled Julie in and kissed her deeply. Julie wrapped her arms around his neck, standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him back just as hard.

After a few minutes, Julie pulled away with a smirk on her face. "I take it that's a yes?"

Laughing, Luke nodded excitedly. "Fuck yes, that's a yes." He pulled her close and rested his forehead against hers. "I love you, Julie Molina," Luke whispered.

"I love you too, Luke Patterson," Julie whispered back.

When the strategy session started half an hour later, Luke proudly shared the good news before Julie even got a chance to. She couldn't be mad at him, though. He looked so ridiculously pleased as he reenacted her asking him to his ghost friends, that Julie just had to stand back and watch their hijinks, shaking her head with both affection and exasperation.

Flynn came over to stand next to her. "I'm really happy for you both."

Julie smiled crookedly at her best friend. "Thanks, Flynn. I appreciate that."

Flynn pointed a finger towards Julie. "Now you just need to figure out the Phantom Gang's next plan."

Julie grinned wide. "Oh, I know _just_ the thing."

The following morning, the headlines started rolling in. Out of all the various articles on the Phantom Gang’s latest job, Julie's favorite headline was: **The Phantom Gang, or the Holy Ghost? Bank robbers donate five million dollars to Doctors Without Borders, Children's Miracle Network, and more.**

The media was positively eating it up. Julie knew she wanted to continue giving her crew a good reputation, and they had so much money that donating a chunk of it to various charities just seemed like the right thing to do. The ghosts in particular all loved the idea, since after they had anonymously gifted their remaining living relatives with a bunch of money, they really had nothing to do with the rest of it that kept coming in from the successful heists they kept pulling off.

The next time they robbed a bank after that, the tellers had big smiles on their faces, only putting up their hands in surrender for the sake of appearances. One asked Julie if they could donate to breast cancer research to help her mother, and another chimed in that his wife was suffering from Alzheimer’s. Julie promised to donate to both causes. As she left, some of the people in that bank branch actually applauded them.

At school, Carrie was getting nasty looks from people who were judging her father for trying to stop the Phantom Gang. It made Julie feel good, to see so many regular people having her crew’s back, even if they didn’t know it was _her_ crew.

After a few more weeks of this, Luke pulled Julie aside. “I think we should go away somewhere,” he told her.

Julie laughed. “To where, exactly? The living room or the kitchen?”

Luke put his hand on her cheek. “Jules, I’m serious. I wanna take you someplace nice.”

Julie closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of her dead lover’s palm on her face. “We have so much left to do, babe.”

“I know. And we’ll get to it,” Luke warmly replied. “But you deserve a break. You work hard. You do so much for other people. You’ve given the gang a great reputation. The public loves us. The cops have no idea who we are or how to catch us. Surely you’ve earned yourself a break, yeah?”

Smiling softly, Julie said, “Okay, handsome. Where did you have in mind?”

“Leave it to me,” Luke said, grinning brightly.

Julie trusted Luke. He had never failed her since they met, and she expected this time to be absolutely no different.

The following weekend, Julie found herself swept away on an airplane headed for the Bahamas. When she got there, a chauffeur was waiting for her. The man took her bags and drove her to a very fancy resort. She checked in and was shown to her room. Once she closed and locked the door behind her, Luke poofed in next to her.

“Lovely, isn’t it?” He stepped behind her to wrap his arms around her waist.

Julie smiled crookedly. “Shouldn’t you be saying that about me?”

“Hmm,” Luke began, teasing her. Then he grinned. “I’d call you more beautiful than lovely, I think.”

“That sounds better,” she replied, wrapping her own arms around her lover’s.

Luke softly pushed her hair to the side, nosing at the nape of her neck. He began to leave a trail of soft kisses there. She inclined her head towards the bed, and Luke knew how to take a hint. He picked her up and laid her down on the bed, moving up to cover her body with his own. The resort room had a wide, open window with silk curtains that were billowing from a cool breeze. Julie looked out the window and saw the bright sun and sparkling ocean, and she felt herself relax. With the gorgeous scenery and her wonderful boyfriend, Julie felt like she was in paradise.

Luke gently kissed down her neck as he asked her between kisses, “Did you ever think that you’d be here right now?”

Julie laughed lightly. “Luke, a year ago I didn’t even know who you were.” She pulled off her shirt and tossed it to the side. “But a lot can change in a year.”

Grinning, he agreed with her. “You’re right about that, Jules.” He gently caressed her side, his thumb making small circles into her soft skin, putting all of his affection for her into the gesture.

“I know. Now come up here and kiss me,” Julie replied, commanding him to come closer with a beckoning finger.

Luke looked like he thought he was the luckiest guy in the world. “Whatever you say, boss.”

And he did just what she asked him to.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Julie & Flynn: Bank Robbers (JatP Bang 2020 Art)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28208904) by [kowaiyoukai](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kowaiyoukai/pseuds/kowaiyoukai)




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